Nanowire array photovoltaics: Radial disorder versus design for optimal efficiency

作者：Sturmberg Bjoern C P^*; Dossou Kokou B; Botten Lindsay C; Asatryan Ara A; Poulton Christopher G; McPhedran Ross C; de Sterke C Martijn

来源：Applied Physics Letters, 2012, 101(17): 173902.

DOI：10.1063/1.4761957

Solar cell designs based on disordered nanostructures tend to have higher efficiencies than structures with uniform absorbers, though the reason is poorly understood. To resolve this, we use a semi-analytic approach to determine the physical mechanism leading to enhanced efficiency in arrays containing nanowires with a variety of radii. We use our findings to systematically design arrays that outperform randomly composed structures. An ultimate efficiency of 23.75% is achieved with an array containing 30% silicon, an increase of almost 10% over a homogeneous film of equal thickness.

• 出版日期2012-10-22